Did you know that marking the beginning of each new year on January 1st is a relatively new custom in Ireland? Believe it or not, this practice is less than 300 years old.

Until recent years New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day celebrations were very subdued in Ireland. The Irish national folklore archive does not hold much evidence of these dates being cause for major festivities in centuries past.

Now let’s face it, the world just keeps on spinning around the sun, and takes a little over 365 days to accomplish this feat. The exact date when we decide this cycle begins and ends, and a new year should be celebrated, is completely arbitrary.

And so since today is officially New Year’s Eve in Ireland and America, I thought I would dedicate this blog post to the history of New Year celebrations, and how January 1st became the arbitrary day chosen to celebrate the New Year on both sides of the Atlantic.

A New Year History Lesson:

It was not until 1752 that the New Year was officially decreed to start on January 1st in Ireland. This was the year when Great Britain adopted the Gregorian calendar rather than the Julian calendar. Since Ireland was ruled by England at that time, we too adopted the new date to mark the New Year. Up until then the New Year was legally declared to start on March 25th.

Now until Christianity took hold in Ireland the New Year had always been celebrated at Samhain or Halloween on the last day of October when the harvest had been gathered. Even after the church officially changed the start of the New Year to March 25th, many rural Irish folk continued to celebrate Samhain as the start of the Celtic new year, and St. Brigid’s Day on February 1st as the beginning of spring.

January Vs. March For New Year Celebrations:

Originally Julius Ceasar decided January 1st was the perfect day to start the New Year since the month was named after the Roman god, Janus, who had two faces, one looking forward and one looking backward. Janus was also the god of doors and gates, so good ol’ Julius Caesar decided this symbolism was perfect for marking the New Year.

After Rome fell in the 5th century Christianity spread throughout Europe. Celebrating the new year on January 1st was seen as a pagan Roman tradition, so the powers that be in the Christian church decided to move the date to March 25th. This was the feast of the Annunciation, when Mary was told by the Angel Gabriel that she was to be the mother of Jesus.

Now there was little unity back in those days. Some countries chose Christmas Day, December 25th to mark the start of their new year, while others chose to change the day every year to coincide with Easter Sunday.

Out Of Sync With The Solar Year:

But troubled times were a brewing for calendar watchers. When Julius Caesar created his calendar based upon the astronomical spin of the world around the sun, he counted 365 days but failed to calculate the extra 6 hours required to complete the cycle. Calendrical chaos ensued as the Julian calendar became misaligned with the solar year.

By 1582 the difference had grown to 10 days, requiring holidays and feasts to be changed frequently to match the solar year. Pope Gregory XIII was fed up with having to re-set the date for the Spring Equinox and Easter each year.

And so he decided to devise a new calendrical system which implemented the addition of a single leap day every four years to keep the solar years and calendrical years all in sync. He also decided to restore January 1st as the official first day of each year.

Catholic countries, like France and Italy, adopted the new Gregorian calendar quickly. But Protestant countries like England were hesitant to accept the calendar created by a Roman Pope.

Since Ireland and America were ruled by England, the acceptance of January 1st as the day for celebrating the New Year did not occur until 1752.

Old Irish New Year’s Customs:

And so you see, celebrating New Year in January is a custom less than 300 years old in Ireland.

To tell you the truth, in times gone by, the main thing Irish folks did on New Year’s day was simply nothing at all.

An old custom dictated that nothing should be brought into or out of a house on New Year’s Day. All water that might be required should be gathered from the well before sunset on New Year’s Eve. All water, both clean and dirty had to be kept inside the house until after the dawn of day on the 1st of January.

The night of December 31st was deemed the anniversary of the date Jesus changed water into wine at the wedding feast of Cana, and for this reason no water should be thrown out, or added overnight for fear the Lord would think the household greedy.

In last year’s New Year’s post I shared some other customs like once again lighting a candle in the window, and how bread was thrown at the door to ward off hunger in the coming year.

Foreseeing The Future At New Year:

It does not appear our forefathers made New Year’s resolutions as we do today. They were not so keen on goal setting and planning, but seemed to trust their future to fate, and of course the weather, which dictated the destiny of a rural farming people, like the Irish.

One natural sign used as an omen of good and bad fortune at New Year was the water level of local rivers. If the river was running high on New Year’s Day, it was a sign that commodities and food would be expensive that coming year. If the river ran low then necessities would be inexpensive.

Another old superstition dictated that no money should be spent on New Year’s Day for fear it would foretell a year of major expenses ahead.

If someone visited a house on New Year’s Day they should always bring a gift, since their lack of giving might indicate the house would be empty throughout the coming year.

As a result, little visiting was done on this date. People believed that by giving away something from their own home they might be giving away their luck. It was safest to sit home and keep everything you possessed under your own roof, rather than visiting neighbors and sharing your luck.

The Cycle Of Life:

And so, January 1st was a very quiet day in Ireland in olden times. Women’s Little Christmas, celebrated on January 6th, was marked with far more festivities. Women were celebrated for all their work over the twelve days of Christmas.

Withered holly was put away and saved so that it could be burned in the fire on Pancake Tuesday, the day before Lent began.

Important Irish festivities were linked through ritual and January 1st did not feature much in this traditional holiday pattern. After Christmas ended on January 6th, the next big day for celebration was February 1st, St. Brigid’s Day, when the coming of spring was welcomed, and the cycle of life was renewed by nature.

Celebrating The New Year Irish Style:

And so, if like me you find yourself a little under-awed by the razzmatazz and hoopla of New Year celebrations, don’t mentally beat yourself up.

As you sit at home, watching the craziness of celebrations at College Green in Dublin, or at Times Square in New York, just raise a glass and toast your Irishness.

Let’s face it, our avoidance of setting resolutions we know we will fail to keep, and our inclination to sit back, relax and do nothing as we ring in the New Year, are simply expressions of our genetic inheritance.

The Irish have never done much to celebrate a January New Year, and so this year I plan to religiously adhere to that age old tradition.

Halloween and fall celebrations are in full swing all around America. Today, I have a little treat for all who are interested in Celtic history and the Irish origins of Halloween.

I’m delighted to introduce you to a documentary film all about “Spiorad na Samhna” (phonetically pronounced as “spir-id nah sow-nah”, with “sow” said as it is when referring to a pig), which in English means the “Spirit of Halloween.”

Dancers at the Spiorad na Samhna Festival in Derry

This bilingual short film tells a two-fold story of how the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced Sow-in) was transformed into today’s Halloween, as well as the origins of Ireland’s biggest Halloween Carnival, in Derry.

The latter began in 1982 in a very bleak period in the city’s history, post- Hunger Strikes. Before then, only children dressed up at Halloween. Tony Toland, manager of the Castle Bar, decided to hold a competition for best costumes.

Tony Toland of the Castle Bar, organizer of the 1982 Halloween Celebration in Derry.

In the first year, only a half dozen people dressed up but, within 3 years, the idea had spread to other bars and spilled on to the streets in a chaotic but peaceful way. Thousands headed to the city center each year, mingling with armed police and soldiers — some imitating them in great detail!

It was this spontaneous, mad event until 1986 when the City Council, recognizing it was a success, added music and fireworks, then a parade, leading to the 3-day Halloween Carnival in Derry, now the biggest in Ireland.

Of course, the roots of Halloween go deeper. Dr. Jenny Butler, Univeristy College, Cork, narrates how it developed from the Celtic festival of Samhain, a time when people prepared for winter, when the Otherworld opened, allowing communication between the living and the dead.

The film has now been screened at festivals in Ireland, Italy and at Irish film festivals in Boston and Seattle.

You can watch the entire short film on Vimeo.

A big thank you to Dessie Baker, the director of this documentary, for sharing his work with us today. Much appreciation goes to other members of this film team including Ciara Ní Fhearghail, the editor, together with Éadaoin Breathnach, Chris McAlinden, and Fiachra O Longain for their camera and sound work, and Paul Kerr for pub photos.

Wishing you all a very happy October, and may all your fall and Halloween celebrations be full of fun and laughter.

History of the Shawl

In days gone by a wool, plainly colored wrap provided practical defense against the elements, in a country infamous for gale force winds and lashing rain.

The word shawl is derived from Sanskrit and some of the first shawls were created in the Kashmir region of India. Historians believe India is the true home of the decorative shawl, where finely spun mantles were created.

But the Irish also embraced the shawl.

The Irish word for shawl is seál and is pronounced just like the English. However a more ancient Irish word for a shawl is “brat” (pronounced braw-th).

In Medieval Ireland a mantle or brat was used as an outer covering. It was a cross between a cloak and a shawl. Made of thick wool with fancy fringing these rectangular or semi-circular coverings protected the wearer from the Irish weather.

Believe it or not Irish brats or mantles became so popular in Europe that in the year 1482 the Pope’s agent got permission to export them (found on the McGinley Clan website).

The Playboy of the Western World:

Pegeen Mike, the love struck leading lady of Synge’s Playboy of the Western World, sported her shawl across the world’s stages in the early years of the 20th century.

She wrapped herself in its warm embrace, as she lamented the loss of her playboy.

I wonder if the actresses who played Pegeen Mike found comfort in their costume shawls, or perhaps they found courage in their shawls to face the world and the controversy surrounding the play when it was first staged.

Shawls On Old Irish Banknotes:

In the 1920’s our new Irish banknotes bore a hauntingly beautiful image of a shawl bedecked lassie.

Cathleen Ni Houlihan leaned on her harp beside a beautiful lake side scene. Draped beguilingly over her tresses, her shawl subtly framed her face.

Her much loved banknote image became widely accepted as the perfect interpretation of traditional Irish womanhood.

The irony of this whole shawl image, is the model for the portrait, Lady Lavery, was not Irish at all. In 1923, Sir John Lavery painted his wife Hazel, as this iconic image of Ireland, even though she was an American.

I wonder if we would have been as proud of our new banknotes, if they had boasted a shawl bedecked image of Pegeen Mike, keening for her lost love, in a torrent of pain and anger.

Perhaps Pegeen Mike would have been a more realistic image of Irish womanhood.

In 1976 a new image of a shawl wearing Irish woman appeared on our currency. This time Medb (Maeve), the legendary Queen of Connacht in Irish mythology took center stage, sporting a warm woolen shawl or brat.

The good Queen Maedb wore her shawl with pride, circulating around Ireland until 1990 when she was replaced by the one pound coin.

Perhaps her image is a better representation of Irish womanhood than the beautiful Lady Lavery. Medb undoubtedly represents a strong Irish woman. I wonder if she wore her shawl to face oncoming armies and lead her men to battle.

The Galway Shawl:

“The Galway Shawl” is an old Irish folk song that tells the story of a rural Irish courtship. Songs like this one reassured Irish girls they were beautiful without adornment. The songwriter praises his Galway girl:

“She wore no jewels, nor costly diamonds,

No paint nor powder, no none at all,

But she wore a bonnet with ribbons on it,

And around her shoulders was the Galway shawl.”

Alack and alas, like many Irish ballads, the song ends sadly. The poor girl’s suitor leaves her high and dry, and heads off towards the beckoning hills of Donegal.

He may have forgotten her charms, but he’ll always remember her Galway shawl.

The Ould Plaid Shawl:

Another old Irish folk song about a shawl wearing Galway girl was written by a Kinvara man called Francis Fahy.

Once again only a simple shawl was necessary to transform this young girl into an angelic beauty.

Mary Kate Danaher loved her shawls. She spied on her man Sean Thornton, while clasping her brown wool shawl.

Mary Kate’s shawl is on display in The Quiet Man Cottage Museum, in Cong, County Mayo.

But not only Mary Kate wore a shawl proudly. Fringed or embroidered shawls appeared on many characters throughout the movie, perhaps serving as a tribute to this traditional Irish garment by the director, Ford.

Wrap Up (Pun Intended):

Irish women have worn shawls for centuries. In days gone by an Irish woman gathered her shawl about her to go about her way.

I can safely say that a long line of Irish women who have gone before me wore shawls. Years ago I remember seeing a photo of my great grandmother wrapped in a shawl. I don’t have the photo to share on this post, but if I ever get a copy of it, I’ll be sure to add it here.

And now it’s time for our giveaway ……

The Prize:

The Pashmina Store, one of the largest online suppliers of pure, grade A, handcrafted cashmere at value prices introduced its pinch-proof pashminas for St. Patrick’s Day parades.

The Pashmina Store is also celebrating the rich spirit and culture of the Irish, along with annual tradition of wearing green on St. Patrick’s Day, with a 10% off coupon on purchases of $50 or more through March 17, 2015.

Everyone can be as lucky as the Irish and take advantage of this promotion by entering GREEN2015 at checkout.

“Whether it’s kelly, lime or emerald, our pure cashmere pashminas can add just the right pop of green on St. Patrick’s Day at work, at the parade or the pub,” said Blair Rhodes, co-owner of The Pashmina Store.

“With record-cold temperatures, bundling up is even more important this year than ever before. Wearing one of our luxuriously soft and pure cashmere and silk scarves, wraps and stoles is a sure way to look fashionable, stay warm and make others green with envy.”

The Giveaway:

One lucky winner will receive a pure pashmina wrap in green.

To enter just leave a comment on this blog post by noon on St. Patrick’s Day, Tuesday, March 17th, 2015. Any comment will do, but if you need inspiration why not tell us about what comes to mind when you think of traditional Irish dress or costumes.

A winning comment will be chosen randomly. Remember to leave your e-mail so that I can contact you should you win. Your e-mail won’t be published or shared, just used to contact our lucky contestant.

Winners will be announced onTuesday March 17th, 2015.

You may check out Irish American Mom’s complete terms and conditions for sweepstake entries by clicking here.

Thanks to everyone who supports and enters this little giveaway. Wishing you all a little bit of Irish luck this St. Patrick’s Day.

March 17th, 2015 – We Have A Winner

Congratulations to R. Mullen, who is our lucky winner, and was selected randomly using the “Pick Giveaway Winner” plug-in for WordPress websites.

Thanks to everyone who joined in and enter this little giveaway, and a very happy St. Patrick’s Day to everyone.

And a big thank you to The Pashmina Store for sponsoring this wonderful prize. Wishing them every success with their wonderful artwork.

Slán agus beannacht,

(Goodbye and blessings),

Irish American Mom

Disclosure: Irish American Mom does not have a business relationship with The Pashmina Store. No cash payment was received for publishing this giveaway post. I wish to thank them for graciously sponsoring the prize for this St. Patrick’s Day giveaway.

Believe it or not, Ireland is one of the leading consumers of tea per capita on the planet. Now I would have assumed India or China might receive this honor, but no, the people of Turkey, Morocco and Ireland love their cuppa the most.

And I for one, am a tea-loving, Irish woman. I love to start my day with a nice, warm cup of tea, or should I say pot of tea, because one cup is never enough.

And so today, let’s explore this phenomenon of Irish tea drinking, followed by a wonderful “Tea for Two” giveaway, sponsored by Dolmen County Retailers.

Before I share the details of this giveaway, let’s first enjoy a little ramble about the Irish cuppa tea ……

The Introduction of Tea To Ireland:

Tea was introduced to the Emerald Isle by the Anglo Irish aristocracy in the nineteenth century. This new Indian import was way too expensive for regular Irish laborers to enjoy in the early years of that century.

Before the Great Hunger, tea was reserved for guests of honor only, likely the doctor or the priest. However, once Ireland’s economy improved in the latter half of the 1800’s, the nation’s affinity for this hot brew just grew and grew.

Rules of Irish Tea Making:

By the turn of the twentieth century every Irish mother was an expert tea maker. Or perhaps I should say “tay maker”.

In the Irish language the word for tea is “tae”, and is pronounced “tay”, which explains why so many cups of “tay” are poured in Ireland every day.

And believe me, every Irish mother knows exactly how SHE makes her tea.

God forbid you forget to scald the pot before adding the leaves or the tea bags. This scalding process involves adding a small amount of boiling water to the empty pot, swishing it around for at least 10 seconds to remove any residue from previous brews, then discarding the hot water.

When I was a little girl in the 1970’s I only remember tea being made with loose tea leaves. In the 1980’s the popularity of tea bags grew. Irish tea drinkers quickly discovered the ease of clean up with this wonderful invention.

But now, back to the rules …..

Only boiling water is acceptable to “wet the tay.” None of this tepid, warm water found in so many American hotels for dunking tea bags hiding weak, tasteless tea leaves.

A boldly flavored, black leaf is imperative for proper Irish tea.

Irish tea is brewed in a teapot rather than directly in a cup.

This facilitates the process of properly “drawing the tay.” Exactly how long the pot must linger over a low heat to produce the perfect shade of brown varies from family to family, and even from person to person within a family.

And for some Irish mothers, the pot must be swaddled in a homemade, knitted, tea cozy to achieve perfection.

How The Irish Drink Their Tea:

Some like it weak, some like it strong, but nearly all Irish people like it hot. No ice tea for most true Irish men and women.

And don’t get me started on sweet tea. Just like coffee, it’s not for this Irish gal. Even after living in the southern United States for the best part of eighteen years, I still can’t drink this southern favorite.

But I digress. Back to the Irish hot brew ……

Some Irish like their tea as dark as porter when it’s finally poured from the pot, and nine times out of ten milk is added.

No fancy lemons or flavorings.

Just a drop or two or ten of milk, and for some a spoonful of sugar helps the tay go down.

The Famous Irish “Cuppa”:

In Ireland a “cuppa” always refers to tea. No “cup a joe” is associated with the term “cuppa”.

We’ll stick to ordering “a cup of coffee”, and reserve the highly honored title of cuppa for none other than our favorite beverage.

In fact, having a “cuppa and a chat”, may be Ireland’s favorite pastime.

Of course there are a few superstitions surrounding your cuppa, with floating tea leaves and rising bubbles predicting the arrival of strangers, letters and riches. If bubbles rise to the top money is on the way. But in some parts, to receive your fortune you need to lift the bubbles onto a spoon before they burst on the edges of the cup.

In my granny’s house floating tea leaves indicated a letter was on its way, but alack and alas there are no more letters in our tea with the adoption of tea bags. E-mails and tea bags must have ensured the demise of letters in the mail. In some parts, floating leaves meant a stranger would soon arrive at your door.

I remember rescuing a floating leaf, placing it on the back of my left hand beneath my thumb, then thumping it with the side of the other hand. The number of hits it took to get the leaf to stick to the other hand told how many days you had to wait for your letter. Perhaps others counted the days to wait for the stranger to arrive in this same manner, and I believe some counted the years till they wed in the same way.

Irish Pubs Must Serve Tea:

No respectable Irish household would be found without tea, and believe it or not, Irish pubs are legally required to provide tea.

I was so surprised to discover this little intricacy of Irish law, but perhaps that’s how those who abstain from alcoholic drinks came to be known as “tea totallers”

“During the famine, a host, to be polite, would offer their guest some refreshments.

The guest would understand that it was likely there were no refreshments to be had,

and would politely decline. If the host had nothing to offer,

no further offer would be made, and both parties would understand the situation.

If a second offer was made, it would mean that the host was in fact

in a position to provide their guests food/drink,

and at this point the guest may accept.”

Thanks for this wonderful insight, Milly.

A Cuppa Tea In The Hand:

Another peculiar Irish tradition is the offer of a “cuppa tea in the hand.” When a hostess doesn’t want to put too much pressure on a guest to indulge in a cuppa, the invitation is worded as follows:

“Ah sure, you’ll just have a quick cuppa tea in the hand.”

The simple sentence is full of innuendo and hidden intent. The hostess is telling her guest she understands what a busy person her guest just happens to be. There is no pressure to have a cuppa, but if the guest does decide to imbibe, a quick departure will be totally understood. There isn’t even an expectation that the guest would have time to sit down. A cup of tea can always be gulped down standing up if the world is calling.

Oh, the nuances of Irish tea drinking ….

The Prize – A “Tea for Two” Giveaway Sponsored By Dolmen County Retailers:

To celebrate the importance of tea drinking in Irish culture, Des Lee from Dolmen County Retailers has graciously sponsored a prize for a giveaway for readers of Irish American Mom.

One lucky winner will receive a Tea for Two Giftpack containing a box of Barry’s Gold Blend Teabags, 2 packets of Ireland’s favorite chips or crisps – Tayto cheese and onion flavor, and 4 Jacob’s Club Milk chocolate biscuits, a perfect treat with a cuppa tea.

Dolmen County Retailers is a new business whose goal is to bring you a taste of Ireland, even when you are far away from home. Irish people living abroad often long for a taste of home. Sometimes it’s Irish tea they crave, or biscuits or a special chocolate bar or crisps, or a favorite treat from childhood. Dolmen County Retailers aim to provide a full range of these items which are easy to order with a few clicks of a mouse. Des Lee and his team take care of the rest, shipping your favorites to wherever you are in the world!

The Giveaway:

I’m making just a slight change in the giveaway entry process this time around. With more and more entries for each little competition on my blog, manually writing out tickets is beginning to take quite a bit of time.

There’s something about paper cutting and pens that attracts little ones. Whenever I heard a little voice ask: “What you doing, Mom?”, I started to reflexively respond with “Don’t touch anything.”

So I thought I would give Rafflecopter a try, to see how well it works. I’m hoping it will make the whole process of running raffles smooth and easy.

Extra entries can be obtained by following along on Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter. Just log in to the widget below with your name and e-mail address and you should be guided through the steps for entering.

I hope it isn’t too difficult, and thanks to all who comment and enter this little giveaway.

Slán agus beannacht!

(Goodbye and blessings)

Irish American Mom

And now a little bit of legalize through a quick disclosure: Irish American Mom does not have any financial connection with Dolmen County Retailers and did not receive payment for publishing this post and giveaway. I simply wish to help spread the word about this new Irish business venture. Thank you to all who support the wonderful Irish and Irish American enterprises who sponsor giveaways on my site.